[ocdtrekkie]

I've long held that self-driving cars are a marketing ploy by Google. Their lead, Chris Urmson, frequently speaks as if it's only a couple years away. One of his famous phrases was that his daughter, 14, should never have to get a driver's license, if he met his goal. He's spoken in front of Congress, acting like the laws are the only thing holding them back, which is false. I'd absolutely call him out on the things he said to Congress being outright lies.

At the same time Google has bragged about their car's previously impeccable safety record, they've admitted in reports to the DMV that the only reason they didn't cause 13 accidents in a year was their test drivers... trained humans. The real safety system in the car.

But everyone thinks Google is the leading edge of innovation "because they make self-driving cars and stuff".

[honkhonkpants]

Yeah but Google _does_ make self-driving cars. You can see them all over Mountain View. They drive themselves. It's amazing.